As Architects we gain inspiration from the world around us. Crafted images have become wonderful sources for our visioning process, and the internet & social media have really opened up the variety of  inspiration images available. I particularly draw from both example projects, built or not, but also from ‘lifestyle’ or ‘scenic’ images that help to create a mood. These are tools that aid us in the creation of spaces and help clients visualize the feeling of the project before the project is even produced. Typically we will print a number of these images and see how a client responds or use them to augment presentations.

Recently I have been working on a project in Banff. It is a small project, and as it is not yet complete I can’t show the designs, but I wanted to share the images we used to inspire our design.

We really focused on a more clean-lined and modern design, but that still fit into the mostly forested location that the building will be built. We had to ensure the footprint would be as efficient as possible!

We wanted to stick with something simple in its shape, but recognizable and in a way nostalgic to the Park. Thinking along the lines of Ski Chalet, or Cabin. Also have it relate back as much as possible to existing buildings in the area.

Of course the intent was also to blend natural materials such as stone and wood, with more modern ones (albeit still somewhat natural) such as concrete and metal. In particular I have always been fond of board-formed concrete, and it appears I may get to use it in this building!

It has been an exciting project so far, and I look forward to having it constructed. Project Visioning is one of my favorite parts of the design process, as it fun to find beautiful images but also really interesting to see what a client likes and dislikes!

Thanks for visiting!

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Disclaimer: The images shown in this post do not belong to me, and I did not produce them. Our process typically involves google searches, pinterest, tumblr, and other such social media/media websites. The header image is from http://www.thousandwonders.net/Banff+National+Park – if an image belongs to you please let me know and I can provide credit, or delete it off this post. Thank you!